Change is for the better!

Here's the best video I have taken so far of Cooper walking. You can see he's still very unsteady, but does pretty well. I have loved watching this new adventure begin for him. He's been so proud of himself, and Marlee has been proud of him too. She tells him he is such a big boy!

Wordless Wednesday

Bathtime!

Addicted to Blogging

I'll be the first to admit, I am addicted to reading other people's blogs. Mind you, blogs of totally random people! I find it interesting to see what other people are up to and how their life is similar to mine or totally different.

Here are a few of the random blogs I frequent. If you come across any you think are worth reading, pass them along. I like to read the blog of a blog of a blog....and so on!

Happy blogging!

http://jakerobinharper.blogspot.com/
http://binnsbackyard.blogspot.com/
http://jennasjourneyblog.blogspot.com/
http://robynbeele.blogspot.com/
http://kargfamilyupdates.blogspot.com/
http://audreycaroline.blogspot.com/
http://www.mycharmingkids.net/

The last one is a girl I went to UT with. Her blog is quite entertaining.
http://sabbespot.blogspot.com/


I told you I was addicted to blogging, but the above stories are moving keep me coming back for more.

Switch It, Change It, Rearrange It!

Marlee is now sleeping in a new room! We were going to clean out the guest bedroom this past weekend. We had talked about switching Marlee's room and the guest room because the current guest room would give Marlee more play space. So instead of cleaning the old room, we went ahead and switched them. She was very hesitatnt and quizzative about what we were doing. Then she like the idea and started twirling around in her new room.

We're painting over the lovely stripes Chad worked so hard on! We figure any future guest will apprecaite a grown up room! Marlee's new room still has the same bare and bland paint from when we moved in. We're going to paint it too. She was very excited to go to Home Depot and look at Mickey Mouse Paints!

Thankfully we took pictures of her room before she was born. So we'll always remember what it looked like! The new guest room and her new room are not finished, but I will post pictures when we finish. So for now, enjoy the good paint job of her old room.

Getting Schooled by the Cashier

I was so excited when I left the grocery store on Sunday! I know, cheesy, but hey, I'll take happy moments wherever and whenever! LOL Since we are down to one income, I am trying really hard to be frugal with grocery shopping. It is by far the largest chunk of our budget beside household bills. I can easily spend $150 dollars a week at the store. So in an effort to save money, I have been clipping coupons and checking the circulars each weekend. I also use a few websites (I'll list the one's I use at the bottom) to download coupons.

I am normally a Kroger's shopper because I like the feeling of using my Kroger plus card each checkout. Well lately, I have been shopping at Publix. They seem to have some better deals on things my family eats and needs. So I've been going there. I will on occasion, shop 2-3 different places, if certain stores have certain things I want. For example, this past weekend, Walgreen's had a $2 off coupon for the formula I use for Cooper and some coupons for toilet paper and paper towels, both of which we were COMPLETELY out. So, I clipped my coupons and planned to stop there after my regular shopping.

I love shopping at our local Publix because they always have an eclectic group of people working there. So, as I was checking out, the cashier took all of my coupons and set them out and organized them before she scanned anything. The bagger, cashier, and I got to talking about coupons, deals, etc, (interjection~I know several of my GA friends shop at Publix and had mentioned their stores except competitor's coupons and double, etc. but I am too chicken to ask out right). So I saw this as my opportunity to ask some questions I had been wondering about. And YES!!! My Publix excepts Kroger's, Walgreen's, and any other competitor's coupons! That is such great news! I still ended up stopping by Walgreen's, but I won't do that anymore!

The one thing I still don't understand is doubling. What does it mean to double coupons? How can I save more money??? Any other grocery saving tips you can offer the better!

Here are the websites I use:
http://print.coupons.com/Couponweb/Offers.aspx?pid=13306&zid=iq37&nid=10
http://www.shortcuts.com/
http://www.couponmom.com/
http://www.pgeverydaysolutions.com/pgeds/en_US/jsp/EDS_Page.jsp?pageID=SCSCL
http://www.ppgazette.com/


$$ Happy Savings! $$

2 Steps Forward, 3 Steps Back

I love 80's musics! I tend to turn the tv on XM Radio and jam to the 80's all day. So, thanks Paula Abdul for today's post title!

So, what's our 2 steps forward? Cooper is walking more and more everyday. His confidence is really building! If he sees something he likes, he'll take off after it. He usually gets in 2-3 steps before he tumbles to the floor. It's so exciting to watch him meet this milestone. He and Marlee have been racing down the hallway and chasing each other around the house. I know Marlee has patiently been waiting on her built-in playmate. I think he's almost ready! Yeah!

I think we can officially say Cooper's first word of association is Sissy! Can you believe that? I guess Chad and I know where we rank on Coop's importance scale!!!! :) He has also worked more this week on identifying the cats, Chloe and Dori. We've noticed him repeating more and more syllables of words we say. I hope he obtains Marlee's quick vocabulary. It is so much fun to carry on conversations with a 2 and a half year old!

Also, we are starting to see some hard work pay off in the manners department. Even before Marlee could talk, we would use proper mannerisms dependant on the situation. She quickly picked up please and thank you. We're still working on yes ma'am/sir and no ma'am/sir. I also try really hard teach her empathy and sympathy. She's begun using compassion with us, especially Cooper. It is wonderful to watch. One of my favorite moments thus far, happened this weekend. When Chad got home Friday night, he gave Marlee a few presents. She was excited and eager to use them. Several hours later, out of the blue, she thanked Chad for bringing her the presents. It was very sweet. She seems gracious when receiving things. She thanks you in detail for everything. She'll even remind you to say thank you!

Now for the steps back. Since we moved back into the house, Marlee has regressed in her nighttime potty training. She went from months of no accidents to one accident or more in one night. I read up on it and it said that change in a child's life can account for the regression. Any advice is greatly welcomed on the topic. Also, she can be mean as a snake to Cooper. It is so aggravating when she acts that way. He can be playing and keeping to himself and she'll walk by and whack him on the head and knock him over. Plus, she tends to ignore you when you give tell her to leave him alone. I'm hoping it is just sibling rivalry rearing its ugly head. Let's hope!

This isn't really a step back, but my days of nursing Cooper are coming to an end. I am so sad! I have nursed him longer than I imagined I would be able to. We are down to only nighttime or early morning feedings. I think I am more attached than he is. I'm just thankful that we've made it 11 months. I keep thinking each time it is the last, so I try and take in as much as possible. I didn't have that luxury with Marlee. I pretty much had to quit cold turkey because I was taking medicine for a sinus infection and didn't want the medication to transfer to her, and by then my milk had dried up. Nursing Marlee and Cooper will always be my favorite parts of their infancy. I feel confident that it creates an lifetime connection and closeness between a mother and a parent.

Blogger isn't let me post a video. So, I will post some of Cooper walking later.

Tag~You're it!

I was tagged by my friend J-Rae. I'm supposed to post the 6th picture from my 6th folder and tell about it. I'm also supposed to then tag 6 more blogger friends.

Enjoy! And before you say anything, yes, this was the 6th photo. Oh Casey, how I loved thee...

If you know me, then you know that I am a huge UT Football fan. This is a picture of my favorite quarterback, Casey. It is from October, 2002. It was during the VOL Walk for the Arkansas game. You notice that there aren't any people in front of me. That was done purposely. I just had to get a picture of him. Although, I think I made Chad take the picture. LOL

For those of you that don't know, I had a HUGE crush on Casey and yes, Chad knew about it. It didn't help the fact that we were both Sociology majors and had some classes together. Thanks to my friend Andy, I have an autographed UT football from Casey. It says to My Biggest Fan Kelly, with 3 exclamation points. :) It is always on display in my classroom, and I share my story with my students every year.

(Isn't he so cute?!?!)

Now it's my turn to tag, and I tag: Lindsay, Alicia, Charlotte, Brooke, Lori, and Amanda

Wordless Wednesday

Gobbled up by the laundry basket.
A little lady and her bug.

12 years ago today Chad called me for the first time. The rest is history...

To Call or Not to Call

I still struggle with when to call the Dr.'s office and when not to call. Cooper had a cough and stuffy nose well over a week ago. He ran no fever and cut a tooth and it went away, so I left it at that. Sunday morning Marlee and Cooper started coughing and had crusty noses. Cooper tugged on his ear off and on Sunday and Marlee sneezed a lot. Still no fevers. Yesterday and today the coughing and runny/crusty noses have continued in addition to cranky people everywhere!

So, my question is, when should I call? I don't want to be one of "those" moms who calls at the first sniffle, but I don't want them to get really sick. I guess I stick by the rule: no fever=no call.

What do you think?

Ready or Not!

Ready or Not, Marlee and Cooper are growing up!

We've been toying with the idea of transitioning Marlee to a big girl bed. Saturday night we decided to take the front off of her crib and let her sleep in it as a toddler bed. She was very excited and we really talked it up. We settled her in with books, baby doll, and her new favorite thing, my Mag Lite flashlight! She did pretty well. We thought we heard her fall out, but it must have been one of the cats jumping down from something.

She and Cooper woke up before the crack of dawn. That was the start of a long day for me. LOL Nap time did not go well and neither did bedtime Sunday night. Hopefully after a few weeks, she'll get the hang of it and then we will work on the full size bed.

Well for Cooper, he's on the verge of walking! YEAH!!! He's standing solo more and more. Sunday morning he took about 3 steps from Chad to me! So excited! He was proud of himself too. I feel confident that he will be walking by his birthday.

He's also repeating the noises he hears from you. He'll "uh-oh" "ma" and "da" a little. He's also starting identifying Marlee as "sissy". He really tries to call the two cats by their names. Of course, the sounds aren't as clear as they are written and Chad says I read more into what Cooper says. I am more in-tune with watching him transition from baby to toddler than I was with Marlee. It is amazing to me to think that Cooper is a little over a month away from his first birthday, which means Marlee will be 2 1/2 years old. Time is really flying by.

Better Late, Than Never

Well, I know I promised to post some pictures of Marlee's V-Day crafts this past weekend. Sorry, I didn't get to that! We spent the day together as a family, just like I wanted. Marlee's new favorite store is Target, so we stopped by there and picked up a few things. It was rather a gloomy day, so we ordered dinner from my favorite Italian restaurant, Ippolitos. We ate a wonderful dinner together and put the kids to bed. Then the wave came...

Well if you remember ages ago, I told of gallbladder issues I was experiencing since Cooper was born. Well, they went away and came back and went away again. I decided it was mostly associated with what I was eating. So, I changed my diet and saw improvements. Lettuce, red meat, and alcohol are triggers for me, so I steer clear of them. No more salads, but Saturday night I ate the side salad that came with my dinner because I LOVE the house dressing. I ordered the shrimp scampi for dinner. Well apparently, the combination of those things triggered an attack. So, I spent the rest of the night curled up on the couch and then in bed. I've been trying natural remedies to help with the attacks. One thing I've been trying is dandelion root. Yes, it tastes as nasty as it sounds. It tastes like I am eating dirt, but I think it helps. Then Sunday I was recovering and nauseated the rest of the day. I guess shrimp doesn't travel well. I'm still not feeling 100%.

I know, I know I need to see a doctor about my attacks. I guess I am avoiding it because I don't really want to have surgery. Although, I have heard people feel 100 times better afterwards.

So, better late, than never, here are the pictures of Marlee's V-Day crafts. Enjoy!


Not really Valentine's Day, but we made it last week.


The after heart wreath.
Making the wreath.
Homemade Valentine's Day Cards made with love by Marlee.

Busy Bees

I hope everyone is well and has been enjoying the wonderful weather this past week! I know that we have truly enjoyed ourselves. We've spent a much time as possible outside, soaking in the warm February sun.

I'm not sure why it is that kids love the outdoors so much, but Marlee and Cooper both were as content as could be this past week. Although, I thought Cooper was coming down with a cold. He had a stuffy nose and a cough. Thankfully, I believe it was due to him cutting a new tooth! Yeah! This bring his chomper total to 5. The 6th tooth is about ready to pop, too. So we ventured out this weekend to our neighborhood park and another local park. Cooper's only complaint, if he could talk, is that he can't take off and run around like Marlee.

During Cooper's morning naps, Marlee and I have been crafting it up! She loves anything that involves glue, paint, and construction paper. We've read Valentine's books and made wreathes and homemade Valentine's Day cards.

We have low key plans for Valentine's Day. More than anything, I want to enjoy the love of my family this weekend. Enjoy pictures from our week of pretty weather! I'm saving our Valentine's crafts to post on Valentine's Day.


Future Olympian.

Mommy and Marlee in the tower!
Notice our pink Braves' hats?
Whee!
I just love that face!

These are a few of our favorite things...

Well, we have been enjoying ourselves around here. Cooper is growing everyday. He's been cruising furniture for a while. He is now venturing out from one piece of furniture to another. He's also mastered walking behind toys. He gets so excited with himself. I got it on video, but it was night and you can't see it to well. So, I will work this week on getting him on film.

He has really taken to feeding himself, too. He loves fresh blueberries, shredded turkey, and cheese. He's mastered drinking from a sippie cup and even takes his formula in them now. His favorite place is anywhere he is not suppose to be! HA Marlee spends as much time chasing him around as I do.

Cooper is dancing like Marlee was at this age. It is so funny. Any song that comes on, he starts moving to the beat. He is also babbling like crazy. His tone changes with his moods. You can tell, esp. when you are changing a diaper, if he is upset. He is also developing a little temper with Marlee. They tend to go after the same toys. Marlee usually wins the tug of war game over the toy, and Coop will have a fit.

It is very hard for me to think back to Marlee at this age. Believe it or not, she had just started walking. I'm actually looking forward to Cooper walking, just so he can go all the places she goes. They will definitely be playmates but will maintain that love/hate relationship.

As for Marlee, she's also trucking along. I know all parents think their children are advanced, but I really think Marlee is ahead of the game. You wouldn't believe the vocabulary this child has learned. She also has a memory that makes you sometimes regret the promises you make to her! She will remind you, even if it is a few days later.

Her new fasination is looking for red lights and "green beans" (aka green lights) as we are going down the road. She also likes to name the color of cars we pass and identifying them as big and little.

She is so darn independant, which leads us butt heads. She wants to do everything for herself. If she doesn't like something, she'll tell you. She is defining the terrible two's. It is harder than I expected. Maybe that is why we are hesitant in taking her out of her baby bed. I'm ready but fear she'll never go to sleep. I haven't done any research on methods for transitioning. So, maybe I'll start there. Any advice is welcome.

She loves all arts and crafts. Paint is her new favorite thing. I'm taking the advice of a blogger friend and taking pictures of all of her arts and creations. I know I won't be able to keep all of them. She can paint 5-6 pictures a day!

Marlee has become interested in my cooking and wants to help. She even made her own grocery list and took it with us shopping last weekend. We have some yummy plans next week for Valentine's Day.

Well, enough from me today. Enjoy the pictures below.

Fighting over the chair. Thankfully, Cooper is getting his own for his birthday. (Notice how short M's pjs are? She feels the need to dress herself. :)
Truckin' Down a One Way Street...
Stringing beads
I've started cutting her papers into fourths to save paper. I helped out on a few. She doesn't like to paint alone.
Craftin' again.

Wordless Wednesday

Notice the concentration on both faces, especially Cooper's.